Data Steward, II

Zebra Technologies•Lincolnshire, IL

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

With ever-increasing demands for high-quality, reliable data to generate timely and effective business insights and data-driven decision-making, effective data stewardship is critical to success. The Zebra Data Steward is responsible for ensuring that data used by the organization is available when needed, welldefined, properly cataloged, scrupulously maintained, and continuously analyzed for trusted usability in business and customer-impacting analytics. The data steward is the ultimate custodian of data and plays a pivotal role in building trust in the data used for strategic and operational purposes, ensuring it meets the highest standards of integrity. This role operates at the intersection between operational processes and data management, acting as the trusted authority in both operational data needs and in data governance best practices, including data quality assessment & assurance, metadata management, and data policy administration & oversight. Additionally, the advanced data steward is responsible for identifying, prioritizing and directly or indirectly executing data cleansing initiatives that rapidly remediate data deficiencies.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree strongly preferred or equivalent experience; preferably in Data Management, Information Systems/Information Technology, Data Analytics, Data Science, or other data-oriented operational fields, such as supply chain, finance, etc.
3+ years of proven professional/academic experience in data stewardship, master data governance, data management, or data analytics.
Advanced technical proficiency with database fundamentals; proficiency in writing and executing SQL queries for data retrieval, manipulation, and analysis; experience with BigQuery and Python
Ability to perform data analysis and build data visualization using tools such as PBI, Tableau, MS Excel, etc.
Up to 20% travel
Ability to work hybrid in Lincolnshire, IL office

Nice To Haves

Strong written and verbal communication skills
Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with keen attention to detail
Solid understanding of relevant operational processes and corresponding data requirements
Ability to synthesize complex data-related issues and convey insights clearly and concisely to technical and business stakeholders
Deep knowledge of data lineage, digital data validation & remediation techniques
Demonstrated initiative in improving data management processes and systems
Proven experience with data cleansing; ability to identify and correct data errors or discrepancies
Demonstrated proficiency with digital data catalog and data governance systems; experience with Alation preferred
Understanding of Conceptual, Logical, and Physical data models and their application
Ability to work autonomously and lead initiatives that deliver high-impact outcomes
Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to work collaboratively across diverse teams
Familiarity with relevant operational systems used in assigned domain area
Prior experience managing outsourced services preferred

Responsibilities

Provide authoritative business data stewardship over internal and external data, ensuring effective data management and alignment with overall business objectives.
Collaborate with operational teams to identify and document current and future data requirements and data use case scenarios.
Define and document data policies that establish standards and expectations for internal and external data, including descriptions, formats, structures, parameters, acquisition frequency & modality, etc.
Implement measures to safeguard data integrity and establish protocols for data validation and auditing; inspect and analyze existing and incoming data to identify disparities.
Identify root causes of data disparities; lead initiatives to improve data quality, accuracy, completeness, and timeliness in collaboration with IT.
Create and execute plans for data integrity improvements; communicate plans, progress and outcomes attained to stakeholders.
Generate and distribute reports and dashboards that provide insights into data quality and compliance.
Identify sources of repeat non-compliance with data standards, and drive corrective actions across people, process and technology dimensions.
Proactively communicate newly discovered data deficiencies to internal stakeholders, including operations, analytics, and IT teams.
Collaborate with IT and data engineering teams to optimize data storage, retrieval, and accessibility using appropriate technologies and tools.
Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders, including operational teams and IT, to identify optimal data acquisition strategies for externally sourced data, including system enhancements, data flow automation, automated inspections, etc.
Facilitate communication between data producers and consumers to ensure mutual understanding and effective use of data assets.
Ensure all data assets are properly recorded in Zebra’s enterprise data atlas tool; manage data dictionary & data lineage entries to maintain integrity of established semantic layer data models.
Establish and oversee a structured change management processes for data-related changes, ensuring impact assessment, stakeholder alignment, data atlas updates, approvals, and stakeholder communication.
Provide training and support to data users across the enterprise to enhance data literacy and promote best practices.
Act as the accountable point of contact for data-related inquiries and issues, offering solutions and guidance as needed.
Train and mentor lower-level data stewards.